Hundreds of people find, buy, restore, and love their collector cars; it is their art. Quilters buy fabric, cut and sew it into designs, and love their quilts; it is their art.

The signature quilt for auction this year at St. Joseph's Fourth of July festival, Joetown Rocks, is a collector cars quilt. The art of both groups is combined in one beautiful hand-sewn quilt — and a separate wall-hanging.

Designed and assembled by Delrose Fischer, the quilt measures 84 by 97 inches; the wall-hanging measures 55 by 68 inches. Both feature photographs of area collector cars on a white background with basil-green strips between the photographs and a basil-green border and back.

Each quilt block identifies the name of the car and the year it was built. The quilt and wall-hanging will be displayed at the back of the "quilt wagon" at 10 a.m. in the St. Joseph parade. Area collector cars will lead and follow the quilt wagon.

Following the parade, the quilt will be on display in Church of St. Joseph until auction time at 2 p.m., along with 20 queen-size quilts and 19 baby quilts of various designs and patterns.

Delrose Fischer traveled to and visited numerous collector car enthusiasts in the area to photograph the cars. She said the project turned out to be a joy and a learning experience for her. Shirts Illustrated in St. Cloud copied the photos onto cloth for the quilt.

One of the first

For many people, the terms collectible, vintage or antique have come to mean the same thing. They are generally cars from an earlier period that have been refurbished and restored to their original beauty, and in working order; they can still be driven.

Joe Prom has a car on one of the blocks. It was one of the first cars on the lot at Krebsbach Motors in St. Joseph: a black 1931 Chevy. It was sold then traded back in 1958. Joe said he saw the car in 1969 at Krebsbach and loved it. Opportunity came knocking when he sold his body shop property in St. Joseph to the Krebsbach Corp. Assessments needed to be paid, however. He negotiated with the Krebsbachs to pay the assessments for the 1931 Chevy. They agreed, and he became the proud owner of the Chevy.

For the average person, car collecting is a hobby. But for St. Cloud-area car collection enthusiast Roy Bernick, it is an obsession. He loves it. He has about 55 cars in his sheds and garages near his Waite Park home. Some are featured on the quilt.

Bernick said that a person usually has a fascination with a certain vehicle or a history with one car, so when that model or year comes up at an auction or sale, he bids on it. "Finding an antique car at an affordable price is not so hard but it can get fairly expensive, depending on the condition or the desired end result," he said. "When less work is required to restore a vehicle, it usually means it will have a higher price. If more work is required, it means a cheaper initial cost. But more work can mean more expenses in the long run. Parts can be expensive. A person's level of restoration and experience plays an important role, too."

Pan Car, too

A St. Cloud Pan Car, owned by the St. Cloud Antique Auto Club, is located near the center of the quilt. It was built in 1918 by Pan Motor Company in St. Cloud. Pan Motor went out of business in 1922 after producing only 737 cars in four years. Because so few Pan Cars were manufactured, their value and desirability is high.

Parishioner Don Wieber's white 1961 Plymouth Fury convertible is on the quilt. He said he and his wife Sherrie bought the car because it was like one he owned when they dated. They found the car in Arizona and "found the parts to restore it all over." On any given day, they like to just cruise around in the car — "or give our grandchildren rides to the Dairy Queen," he added.

Nancy Laumeyer said they purchased their 1908 Maxwell — red with "lots of brass" — and a 1910 Maxwell, red with black fenders, in the 1990s. They became interested because some of their friends had been telling them how much fun it was to tour in the antique cars. She said, "We meet the nicest people on those tours, and it's so much fun. We go places we never would go otherwise."

Nick Prom's car on the quilt is a 1928 Packard. Delrose Fischer said when she photographed it, she thought it looked "kind of like a mafia car." Nick became a collector after he bought a motorcycle that his wife Linda never liked. In 2010, at a car museum in Chicago, he and Linda saw a butterscotch-colored Packard. Linda fell in love with it. The motorcycle was sold. The Packard has become their family-fun car. They take the kids for rides; they take it to car shows and to other summer events.

Each car on the quilt has its own story. Collector car owners take part in shows, parades, tours, auctions and family events — weddings, graduations and even funerals.

Area residents are excited about the cars and the quilt. Fischer said she put in more than 250 hours visiting owners, taking pictures and assembling blocks. She thinks she put more than 300 miles on her truck. After assembly of the quilt by Fischer, the St. Joseph quilters group dedicated more than 100 hours quilting, binding and hemming it. "Many area car enthusiasts' told me they plan to bid on the quilt," Fischer said. Money raised will go toward parish needs.

This column is the opinion of Marilyn Salzl Brinkman. Write to her at Brinkman1943@gmail.com or the St. Cloud Times, P.O. Box 768, St. Cloud, MN 56302.